What keeps you away from pop?

RockaholicMama
RockaholicMama Posts: 786 Member
edited September 24 in Health and Weight Loss
Every week I like to have one, maybe two diet coke zeroes. I know they're not good for you at all and I want to steer myself away. I used to have one a day. I've dropped to the couple a week, but I would like to cut it out all together.

I was thinking of doing an iced tea with a tad bit of sugar substitue. But, again bad. I grew up with sweet tea and I'm such a sucker for it.

Any suggestions for me?
«1

Replies

  • KLJ456
    KLJ456 Posts: 25 Member
    I just started drinking Poland spring sparkling water...gives me the bubbles I like without the bad stuff.
  • tritta01
    tritta01 Posts: 311
    Ok 1st my name is Trista too so thats cool, I use to drink 1 to 2 pops a day, I think if you drink ice tea with sugar sub its better then pop and I drink crystal light too.
  • homerjspartan
    homerjspartan Posts: 1,893 Member
    I like the diet Lipton Green Tea.

    But seriously, any book you read on eating healthy will tell you that the most important thing is moderation. If you are having 1 or 2 a week, you aren't hurting anything. Enjoy your pop. It is the little pieces of happiness that keep us motivated.
  • RockaholicMama
    RockaholicMama Posts: 786 Member
    Ok 1st my name is Trista too so thats cool, I use to drink 1 to 2 pops a day, I think if you drink ice tea with sugar sub its better then pop and I drink crystal light too.

    It's always cool to meet another Trista!

    I was thinking just a little sugar sub in the tea would be ok - better than pop anyways :) I do drink crystal light. It helped me cut back to the one or two a week as oppsed to my daily fix.
  • sweetlilgiggles
    sweetlilgiggles Posts: 23 Member
    I drink three liters of water a day. Really, when I'm focusing on making sure I take in enough water, I don't have time to crave a diet soda. However, once a month (thanks, Mother Nature), I do find myself craving it...and chocolate.
  • I used to be a Diet-Coke-Aholic but I've been drinking mostly water lately (and a glass of wine or two on the weekends). I saw a doctor on tv discussing the whole thing and she said a Coke Zero or Diet Coke once a week is not bad. It's drinking it every day that produces the bad side effects. I guess we just have to keep everything in moderation, kwim?
  • JulieTX86
    JulieTX86 Posts: 303 Member
    I just stopped cold turkey. It's amazing how much better I can fall sleep now.

    I actually don't drink anything now except for water and protein shakes. No pop, tea, etc.

    Occasionally I have a glass of wine though. :)
  • RockaholicMama
    RockaholicMama Posts: 786 Member
    I like the diet Lipton Green Tea.

    But seriously, any book you read on eating healthy will tell you that the most important thing is moderation. If you are having 1 or 2 a week, you aren't hurting anything. Enjoy your pop. It is the little pieces of happiness that keep us motivated.

    Very true. Thank you. I like that little piece of advice. Might help if I look at it like a treat.
  • karo224
    karo224 Posts: 292
    oh how i wish i had the answer to this one. i have always been such an ad**** to soda and thought i was home free with the diet soda when i switched. now, with all the stuff out there about aspertame and the horrible side affects...i have gone cold turkey. oh how i love my soda's.....now i just add real lemon or lime juice to my water as a flavor boost and keep me from getting board. i quit all aspertame on the 16th of Feb....and once i detox from it ; i will check into having maybe one a week....everything in moderation i keep saying.
  • I like to think that I would rather eat my calories than drink them!

    Also dont just think about weight, think about how best to 'fuel' your body, what it is doing to your lovely pearly whites and also your insides! Wow this sounds morbid hahaha I am not a morbid person!

    Diet coke (and other diet drinks) have aspartame in them which your body cant actually digest very easily. You are 'better off' drinking regular coke because at least you can digest/use/burn off the 'regular' sugars in it.

    Maybe switch to fizzy water and add fruit juice to it and maybe some mint leaves to give it that kick/extra taste you like so much in pop. I bet websites like skinnytaste.com have some great cordial recipes that you can add to fizzy water or none sugar lemonade.

    Hope that is useful :)
  • ifixyospeech
    ifixyospeech Posts: 25 Member
    Water, water, water! If you get a big giant water bottle (I have a 32oz one from work) and just keep that on you at all times, you will always have something to drink and no excuses to go get a pop. Coffee used to be my vice (with TONS of cream and sugar!) and so having water on-hand all the time gave me something to do with my hands and also filled me up somewhat so I didn't crave the coffee taste so badly. What I do now is save coffee for the weekend, but even so it's only like, 2-4 cups the entire weekend max. Maybe you could do the same with the diet coke?
  • better_days_ahead
    better_days_ahead Posts: 69 Member
    I stopped drinking pop around a year and a half ago. What helped me through at first was Sam's Choice Clear American: Flavored Sparkling Water from Walmart or Sams Club. Has way too much zest for me now, but helped me tremendously while trying to quit drinking pop. All I drink now is Water or Crystal Light.
  • mistyb47711
    mistyb47711 Posts: 861 Member
    I must be the bad one then..lol...I make sure I drink all my water for the day then I have a diet soda....Until I can get totally away from them.
  • RockaholicMama
    RockaholicMama Posts: 786 Member
    I drink three liters of water a day. Really, when I'm focusing on making sure I take in enough water, I don't have time to crave a diet soda. However, once a month (thanks, Mother Nature), I do find myself craving it...and chocolate.

    I know exactly what if feels like to crave it!! Even when I was pregnant with my daughter I craved coke over crushed ice. Then when I was writing my first novel I sued coke as means to help me stay up later. Bad choice.
  • JulieTX86
    JulieTX86 Posts: 303 Member
    I drink three liters of water a day. Really, when I'm focusing on making sure I take in enough water, I don't have time to crave a diet soda. However, once a month (thanks, Mother Nature), I do find myself craving it...and chocolate.

    Same here... I switched to drinking 3 liters of water a day and I don't have the urge to dare touch another liquid. LOL
    I just keep refilling the same one liter bottle each day and carry it with me everywhere I go.
  • tammy200678
    tammy200678 Posts: 201 Member
    Do not know if this will help but i cut It out diet pop all together because the aspartame in it can make u gain or not lose weight can also give u cancer and cause memory loss when u drink it for long time so I allow myself one regular pop small glass and stick to tea coffee and kool-aid and in these drinks I use pure Cain sugar in moderation and water lots of it Everyone is different but found this is what works for me still losing weight by doing this
  • kylakesgal
    kylakesgal Posts: 952 Member
    Hi I'm a southern girl myself and was raised on sweet tea. I'm sure my Mom probably put it in my baby bottle. Try just drinking nothing but water for a week. Add lemon or fruit of your choice if it's just too bland. Also I heard a splash of cranberry juice was good. After only water for a week, try drinking a diet coke. Yuck,,, way too sweet for me now! I was a huge sweet tea drinker and coca cola but just can't drink either now. Hope this helps.
  • I used to drink soda a lot. I'm kind of grossed out to think of the amount I drank.

    Now, I just don't buy it, I just walk by the aisle at the grocery store. It really is the easiest way. And if I ever stop somewhere for food, (I'm a sucker for Wendy's but I am doing so much better not going or just picking something "healthier") I'll order a bottled water. That took the longest to get used to and was the hardest for me. But once I saw the amount of calories was being wasted on soda it made it easier.


    At first I got sparkling water and would add some lemon or lime (lime was my favorite). Very refreshing.
  • asj0901
    asj0901 Posts: 141
    So I have been free of diet soda for a while (est January 2011 that is a while for Aimee time) But on Monday my boss gave me a 24pack of diet coke left over from a party. Okay so I took it home and of course my husband and I drank it. Well here is what I have learned

    1. I didn't realize I hadn't had a headache in a while until I got one suspiciously after drinking diet soda. Hmmm???
    2. I have not been snacking lately but for some reason this week I felt an incredible urge to snack.... popcorn, cereal, snack snack snack. I normally have a snack in the afternoon dont get me wrong but this was an URGE to bring my hand full of food to my mouth. Hmmm??
    3. Bloated!!!!

    I talked to my hubby and he said he felt the same way. The only new addition this week was DIET COKE! So we decided since we experienced first hand how we felt. Under no circumstances is it allowed in our home. YEAH!!!


    Also there is a pop at Whole foods called Zevia. The orange soda taste just like sunkist and they have a pretty tasty dr. pepper knock off.
  • sarahliftsUP
    sarahliftsUP Posts: 752 Member
    i used to drink a lot of diet pop. I maybe buy a 2L bottle once a week and end up throwing out half of it. I want to stop all together as well.

    To keep me away from it, I don't buy it! It's hard but really simple. If it's not in my fridge, I won't drink it. It also helps me to get in my necessary water intake for the day. And I found it had bad effects for me too. The one night last week I had diet pop, I ended up craving junk. I was told it's because your brain is confused by the sweetness you are tasting but the no calories.. so then you start craving sweet foods. But I think I would get the same with regular pop. I usually drink pop with bad foods so it is just an association with bad habits.

    I think it's been over a week since I've had any. It tastes good.. but then it makes me feel gross by craving junk.
  • kao708
    kao708 Posts: 813 Member
    Nothing keeps me from it so I learned not to buy it. :tongue:

    Seriously, I will have a soda some times but usually I drink black coffee, unsweetened tea, and water. It basically comes down to not wanting to waste calories on beverages!
  • foxyforce
    foxyforce Posts: 3,078 Member
    it's mind over matter, i've had pop, sometimes i have a few a week, but i dont need it or even want it, i actually like water better
  • I started drinking crystal light, and slowly added more and more water to it. Now, I drink water with a dash of crystal light. It took me about a month, but I can hardly drink regular soda or crystal light now. Water tastes so much better. Just give it time, you'll get there. :smile:
  • helloiloveukitty
    helloiloveukitty Posts: 448 Member
    all the weight I've lost since I gave it keep me away pretty well. After 3 soda free months I stopped wanting it. After 6 I rarely even thought about it except for yuck when I would get offered one. Now its been over a year and I don't ever see myself drinking it again.

    but a good not really soda but kinda like soda if it wasn't poison treat for me has been Steaz green tea root beer, this stuff is so amazing and tasty!
  • I would go with sparkeling water for sure! Stick a little lemon in it. Or make ice tea and don't put anything in it. I like to get fresh mint and steep them together.
  • austepants
    austepants Posts: 356 Member
    I replaced all pop and juice with homemade green tea. I buy the tea bags from the store then make a pitcher of tea then add as much sugar as I feel necessary. That way I control all that goes in it. I don't crave pop at all anymore except maybe once a month and that is always a diet coke. Other than that I drink water and water with twist tubes and that keeps me happy and healthy!! It takes some will power at first but it sounds like you don't drink a lot to begin with so it should be easy :)
  • Thomasm198
    Thomasm198 Posts: 3,189 Member
    I used to be a Coke addict (the drink, not the other kind LOL :laugh: ).

    Water or grapefruit juice is what I drink now
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 480 Member
    I like to think that I would rather eat my calories than drink them!

    Ha! I've thought this too. I can have another sandwich OR drink a Dr. Pepper.

    But in all seriousness, I just weened myself off. I drink so much water that I don't have time to think about drinking a soda. I have had one in the past 2 months and honestly it tasted funny.
  • Shannon7713
    Shannon7713 Posts: 76 Member
    Wow, everyone has such great ideas about getting off soda... I drink Caffeine-Free Diet Coke, id say about 3 to 4 cans a day..... Thats been something I cant seem to stop. I renently went to Caffeine free a couple months back and now I can sleep so much better!! I feel better too, less headaches :) I just cant seem to get away from it tho.... Ill have to try the sparkling water....
  • Kiwijay
    Kiwijay Posts: 216
    Luckily I don't really like it, very rarely do I crave it or anything like that and LOVE drinking water! I go through heaps of water a day and don't drink anything else. I also don't drink hot drinks so save on empty cals and stuff on that. Fizzy is addictive though!
This discussion has been closed.